


Helmet and Sword

by JustAndrea



Category: Wander Over Yonder
Genre: Gen, Jealousy, Swordfighting, mild violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-30
Updated: 2016-09-30
Packaged: 2018-08-18 15:55:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8167609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JustAndrea/pseuds/JustAndrea
Summary: When Cashmere sees that his new ally is fairly skilled with swords, he offers to help teach and train Hater to be a master at it. So what if he already has electric magic that he could use instead, swords are cool! As it turns out, the Prince of Baaaaahalla is a pretty good teacher, and is slowly becoming Hater’s friend as well. But not everyone - especially not a certain commander - is as thrilled with the situation as they are.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place after my other story, 'Freezing Warmth'.

“So, you guys actually eat garbage?” “It is-a used as a gaarnish and to provide-a flaavoring, complementing the other food we eat. But, yes, we-a do eat garbage.” “Huh… So, does that make dumpsters like all-you-can-eat buffets for you guys?”

Peepers rolled his eye, shaking his head at his lord. At least Prince Cashmere didn’t seem too offended by this question - though the prince still frowned a bit at it. If there was one thing that Hater still hadn’t managed to improve on during all of his years of being a conqueror and lord, it was his tact and communication skills during conversations. 

Still, this meeting with their new ally had been going _much_ better than the commander had expected. Originally, the whole suggestion of teaming up with royals that had, just a few months ago, been their prisoners seemed ridiculous - and honestly pretty surprising as well since the idea came from Hater himself. But, after a bit of thinking, Peepers did start consider it a worthy strategy to test. With the galaxy the way it was thanks to Dominator and everyone feeling pretty desperate, lines between ‘good guys’ and ‘bad guys’ could be erased and temporary alliances could be formed. His temporary team-ups with Sylvia had certainly proved this. 

‘And besides,’ Peepers thought to himself as the three of them entered another hallway in the huge, mountainous castle, ‘At least he’s focusing on something that could actually help us and strengthen our forces rather than something pointless like chasing Wander or competing with Awesome’. So there they were, scouting out their new ally’s forces and resources and - at least in Peepers’ case - seeing if it was worth the alliance in the first place.

“Now, I am-a sure yoou have both been-a waiting to see this room.” Pushing open the huge wooden doors, Cashmere stepped aside and allowed the two villains to see what he had to offer. Hater stared in awe while Peepers’ eye couldn’t help but widen in glee. At last: The weapons room!

All along the walls were spears, swords, hunting knifes, shields, and even a few axes and maces - all of which were made by hardy and strong Baaaahalian metal and wood (as indicated by the intricate carvings in the handles of each weapon). Maybe they were a bit archaic when compared to the blasters and weapons the Hater Empire had, but still-

“So coooool,” Hater commented, walking over to the swords.

Cashmere smiled a bit. “Heh, thank yoou, Lord-a Hater. We try to keep our aarmory well stocked and-a ready foor any battle or enemy we may face.”

“I see… And, is any of this metal lava resistant?” Peepers questioned.

The prince’s proud smile faltered a bit. “Er, I do not believe so… But, but they all are-a stroong enough to cut through ice, so-” “Whoa! Peepers, look at this one!”

Both men glanced over at Hater, just in time to see him nearly knock over a rack filled with shields with a swing of his sword. “Sir!”

Of course, Hater ignored his cry and kept swinging - though he did decide to move away from the wall a bit before he continued. The sword was a bit heavy, but it was also sharp and powerful, with the handle fitting almost perfectly in his hands. The skeleton grinned as he started to pretend that he was slashing through all of Dominator’s dumb lava bots. “Aw yeah, this is great!”

Cashmere’s smile returned a bit, pleased by his ally’s enthusiasm at least. “Lord Hater, I did not-a know yoou were a swordsman.”

“Hm? Oh, well-” He started to smirk slightly, “I don’t really need to use swords that often since, you know.” He wiggled his fingers a bit. “Magic lightning powers. But still, I just figured that I would teach myself how to use a sword so I could be even stronger and cooler, and know how to use a great weapon.” He swung the sword again, trying to get into a sweet action pose. “And, I’m sure this isn’t too surprising but, I’m pretty good with a sword too!” He paused, and scowled. “Better than that stupid Brad Starlight anyway!”

“Who?” “Oh, just some annoying nobody. Trust me.” “Ah. Well…” Cashmere stepped forward, moving to the skeleton’s side, “Yoou indeed have a talent foor the sword, and you-a seem to know some oof the basics. But, there are still a couple oof improovements to be-a made.”

Peepers felt himself stiffen slightly as Hater made a slightly annoyed face. “Oh yeah? Like what?” The commander held back a sigh. Great, here we go… He just knew that Hater was going to either ignore Cashmere’s advice completely, or get annoyed by it and start ordering Cashmere to ‘not tell him what to do’. Whatever happened, Peepers just hoped it wouldn’t ruin any chances they had of getting a few Baaaaahalians to support them in their next battle.

“Well, foor-a starteers, you should-a widen yoor stance a bit,” Cashmere suggested, “To help with balance.” 

“Balance…” After a moment or two, Hater shuffled his feet apart slightly, just a couple inches away from where he originally had them.

The goat prince nodded. “Yoor arm placement is preetty much-a perfect.” “Really?” “Yes. But you should-a try to remember to slash diagonally. Horizontal and-a vertical cuts take just a couple oof seconds longer than diagonal cuts. In a battle, those few seconds can be crucial.”

“Oh. Well, uh, I knew that.” Cashmere placed his hands on Hater’s forearms and helped direct them in diagonal motions, and Hater didn’t even try to resist. Peepers blinked. Hater was… actually letting Cashmere teach him? 

The prince gave him a smile. “But, as I said, you do have-a talent.” 

Lowering his sword, Hater quickly smiled back. “Hmph, told you.” Despite the boasting though, a bit of appreciation could still be heard in his voice. “And, you know, if you _really_ want to see how good I am, you should see me in an actual sword fight.”

“Hmm…” A sword fight was not a bad idea. But a spar, that was even better. “…Since we are allies, I may have a, ah, proposition foor you.” Hearing this, Peepers’ eye widened as he leaned forward slightly. “If you would-a like, I could train you and-a teach you some more advanced sword-a-fighting moves. And in exchange, perhaps yoor empire could-a give us a bit of yoor more advaanced technology.”

Hater stared at him for a moment. “You… really want to teach me?” “Yah! Why would I not?” The skeleton thought for a moment, and then smiled. “Fine, you’ve got yourself a deal.” “

Ah, excellent! I am sure you’ll a master in-a no time with the two oof us woorking together!” Cashmere exclaimed as he held out his hand for his new student to shake. 

Hater quickly shook it, giving a nod. “Yeah! And with our swords and my magic, any dumb lava-bots that try to attack us won’t stand a chance!”

“…” Peepers crossed his arms. “Well, I didn’t see this coming,” he mumbled. Sure, he knew Hater was interested in swords - his torture room and bedroom had several of them - but actually agreeing to be a student? That was a whole new story.

After all, Hater didn’t even let Peepers train him anymore, insisting that the ‘greatest in the galaxy’ didn’t need to be taught any more than he already knew and that he could practice on his own (that part Peepers never believed, given how often he found his lord just playing video games or watching tv). And yet… And yet he was willing to let some warrior prince he knew teach him, just because he had ‘cool’ weapons?

Despite his tiny fists being clenched, Peepers just rolled his eye, trying not to look too concerned with the situation. “Besides, I’m sure he’ll lose interest in all of this sword fighting and training after a week.” Yep, in about a week’s time, he just knew that his lord wouldn’t care about Cashmere or his swords whatsoever. Just a matter of time…

()()()()()()()()

Hater gritted his teeth, practically slamming his sword against the attack dummy. While part of it was hacked to bits, another part of the dummy spun around and blocked his attack with its shield. “Grrr!” He tried to move around the shield, but it just kept turning, blocking any attempt at getting through its defenses.

The skeleton glared at the dummy. Fine! If it wouldn’t give him an opening, then Hater would just make one himself. With a roaring battle cry, Hater swung his sword down and tried breaking the shield with his blade, as if it were an axe instead. He actually managed to get in a couple good slashes, cutting deep into the thick wood of the shield, but not quite breaking it. He started to try again, but-

 _“Sluta!”_ Hater stopped, scowling as he put his sword down and faced Cashmere. “What now?!” he snapped.

“You-a cannot attack the shield like-a that! In a battle, it would-a take too much time to break throough!” “I’m strong enough to break a stupid shield! If you just let me keep trying, I’ll show you!”

Cashmere sighed. “It is not a matter oof strength, Lord Hater…”

From over on the sidelines, Peepers glanced up from his personal tablet. Only two days into the training and they were already getting on each other nerves. Just as the commander had expected. Was he disappointed? Sure, maybe a little, but it wasn’t as if Hater didn’t still have his lightning. He was powerful enough without being a master swordsman. 

“Can’t really blame him for failing either,” he muttered, glancing over at Cashmere for a moment before looking back down at his screen. After all, it took a special person to be able to train and teach someone like Hater.

“Look, I’m doing all the techniques!” Hater argued, positioning the sword in his hand at an angle, “And I’ve got a good stance! But I also know how to fight, and I don’t need you telling me how to fight!”

“I thought yoou-a wanted to become a master?” “Yeah well, maybe I can teach myself how to become a master!” With that, Hater turned back to the dummy and continued hacking at it, determined to succeed. Just a few more slashes, and he knew he could break it!

Cashmere crossed his arms, but he didn’t scowl. Instead, he watched the skeletal lord continue his one-sided spar, studying him and eventually walking over to him just as Hater managed to break the shield. “Haha! Yes! In your fa-” A gear turned, and in a few seconds, one of the dummy’s arms retracted and was quickly swapped out for a new shield. “… _Awwww!_ Seriously?!”

“You know-” Hater turned his head slightly, ready to argue- “You reaally do have-a quite the physical strength.”

“Yeah well-! Wait.” He blinked, not expecting the compliment. “Er, I mean, y-yeah I do! Just like I told you!”

Cashmere nodded. “And, may I add, yoou also have quite the-a deteermination! I have certainly never seen any oof my soldiers work so hard to break a shield, or succeed in-a dooing so!”

Unsurprisingly, Hater couldn’t help but smirk a bit in pride at that. Peepers however, wasn’t as impressed. “Oh please,” he mumbled, rolling his eye, “Anyone can win him over temporarily with a quick compliment.” Pleasant comments aside, he was certain that Hater still saw the goat prince as disposable, and come the next annoying critique, the two would be right back where they started - and that much closer to Hater calling off the whole thing. 

“Yes, yoor strength and-a determination is quite impressive, but unfortunately you cannot always ooverpower yoor opponents.”

Hater’s smile fell a bit. “Well, maybe _you_ can’t, but-”

“If you-a try the head-on strategy with eeveryone, there is a chance that yoou will-a get tired befoor they do.” “No I won’t! I’m-” “ _But_ , if you try to balance yoor great-a strength with strategy, then I can aalmost guarantee you a win!”

“…” Hater thought for a moment. “Hmph. …So, just what do you mean by balance?” Peepers glanced up again. 

“Instead oof focusing on-a one area that you know yoou will eventually-a break,” the prince started to suggest, “Try aaiming foor an area that you can-”

Hater scowled, throwing his hands up in the air. “I _know that_ , Cashmere! I’m not an idiot! That’s what I was trying to do, but the stupid thing kept blocking me!” 

“Oonly because you were-a still fighting directly,” Cashmere retorted as he unsheathed his own sword. “May I demonstrate?” 

“Hmph.” He didn’t look too pleased about it, but even so, Hater stepped aside and crossed his arms. Giving him a quick thanks, Cashmere stepped forward and started to attack the dummy. With each attempt to cut it with his sword, the shield would move and block it. 

“Eeven if you are-a hitting other areas, part oof you is-a still focused on the shield. You-a think oof a temporary solution - something to do until you-a get past the shield or-a get the defense to weaken - instead oof a new plan oof attack.”

“…” Uncrossing his arms, Hater watched with curiosity as the prince backed away from the dummy slightly. Having a bit of an upper hand now, the wooden soldier started attacking stiffly with its sword. Cashmere blocked, but didn’t try to advance. That is, until the dummy raised its sword, its shield still protecting its front. 

With precise timing, Cashmere tucked in his weapon as he crouched down, rolling forward with ease and swiftness before standing up behind his ‘opponent’. Hater’s eyes widened, his mouth now agape slightly at the expert maneuver performance. And, before the dummy had the chance to try and turn around, the prince stabbed his sword through the wooden base of it, temporarily shutting it down. 

Smiling a bit in victory, Cashmere then looked back over at Hater. “So, was that a good exaample, Lord Hater?”

“That, er, that was alright I guess,” he replied quickly, trying to not look too impressed by it. Though, even he had to admit- “But, that was sorta cool. …Pretty cool.”

Cashmere chuckled, giving a slight bow. “Thank yoou, Lord Hater. I appreeciate the-a compliment.”

“Yeah, whatever. …So, if there’s an enemy with a dumb shield that keeps blocking me, I just roll and-?”

The prince shook his head. “That is-a simply one option, but it all depends on the opponent and the-a battle. I was just demonstrating that there is-a more than just attacking head-on. As I-a said befoor, you must balance your great strength with-a great strategy. Now…” He took his sword out of the dummy, reactivating it before stepping back. “Would you like to try again?” 

Not even noticing that his tablet had fallen asleep, Peepers watched as Hater thought about it for a couple moments, and then stepped back over to his spot in front of the dummy. “…Hmmm…”

Hater raised his sword, giving a determined glare as the dummy got its shield ready. The ‘spar’ started out with no change - Hater would try and hit the shield or near the shield, hoping to find an opening or break the dummy’s grip on its only means of defense. But Cashmere didn’t try to correct or comment. He could see the skeleton’s horns folded down in concentration, trying to think of something.

At one point, Hater tried jumping up, hoping to get in a killing headshot. Unfortunately, the dummy still had its sword, and raised it to block Hater’s shot. “Grrrrr!”

“Just keep at it,” he heard Cashmere say, “Focus. I-a know you can do this.”

“…” Hater gripped his sword. He could do this… He just had to think of a way to- 

The dummy noticed his hesitation and attacked once more, causing Hater to back up and out of its range - and that’s where it hit him. Eyes wide, the skeletal overlord thought about it for a couple more moments, wanting to make sure his plan would work before grinning. Both Cashmere and Peepers watched him curiously, wondering what he was going to do.

The dummy stiffly swung its sword, keeping its shield strong. Once the sword was brought back, Hater rushed forward. The dummy brought its shield up slightly while at the same time launching another attack. Expecting this, Hater met its blade with his own, and then ducked. Thanks to the shield being too high up now to block it (plus a bit of Hater’s own speed), he was able to slash at the base of the dummy.

His ‘opponent’ stuttered, lowering its weapons a bit, and that was just enough for Hater to finish it off. _*Slash! Slash! **STAB!** *_ With gears grinding to a halt, the dummy leaned back, defeated. “YEAH!” Hater cheered, pumping his fist in the air - though he wasn’t the only one celebrating.

“ _Bra jobbat!_ Eexcellent-a work, Lord Hater!” Cashmere told him as he walked over. Once he was close enough, he patted Hater’s shoulder - a gesture that definitely didn’t go unnoticed (or unappreciated) by the skeletal lord. “A well earned-a victory!”

“Uh, yeah. Yeah!” He fistpumped in the air again. “LORD HATER, NUMBER ONE SWORDFIGHTER!”

Cashmere chuckled. “You are indeed-a great, but I would still suggest praacticing as-a much as possible, so you can have plenty oof other strategies at yoor disposal during-a battle.”

Practice, huh? “Well then, bring out another one!” Hater insisted, still grinning, “I don’t care how many shields it has, I’ll totally come up with a way to defeat it!”

“Veery well,” Cashmere nodded, glad to see that the skeleton still had his enthusiasm. Maybe they could even have a spar later, the idea certainly seemed appealing. But as he walked over to the closet to grab another training dummy, neither he nor Hater noticed the small glare they were getting.

“…Lucky break,” Peepers said finally, forcing himself to get back on his tablet. He had work to do, after all. Work that was just as important as playing with swords. Maybe even more important. Besides, just because Hater was excited from his ‘win’ and just because Cashmere _seemed_ like a good teacher didn’t mean that this was still going to last more than a week. At least, that’s what Peepers kept telling himself as another practice battle commenced… 

()()()()()()()()()

That one week quickly turned into two, then three, then a whole month had passed, and the Skullship was still stuck in the same system - or at least, it felt like they were stuck. Sure, they would go to other planets and work on various plans to stop Dominator, but only if they didn’t interfere with Hater’s training - which he insisted on going to at least three times a week. 

“Hmph, three times a week,” Peepers muttered to himself, pressing down on his keyboard a bit harder than necessary as he typed up a brief report, “Don’t know why he can’t just stay here and train. We’ve got swords here. It’s not like he needs that ball of wool to re-teach him the basics each time.” Even Hater didn’t need that. 

But what was even more annoying was how often these ‘lessons’ got extended. It seemed like half the time when Peepers called about picking him up, Hater would insist that he’d just drive himself back to the Skullship later. Sometimes he’d come back after suppertime (even if he wasn’t sure how it would effect his system, Peepers hoped to Grod that his lord wasn’t actually eating garbage), other times it would be near midnight when Hater finally returned. Just what was keeping him over so long?!

By this point, Peepers was hitting the keys so hard that he was causing a couple Watchdogs to stare at him. Maybe he would’ve yelled at them to keep their eyes on their own screens, if not for hearing the sound of the metal doors opening at that moment. “Hey Peepers, are you guys done yet? I thought you said that it would only be another hour!”

Peepers held back a sigh. “I said an hour _or so_. Typing up research takes time, Sir. But, I think we’ve just about finished this new list of possible plans. Of course, they haven’t been expanded on yet, but once we select the best out of them we can start-” The commander turned to face his lord, and his pupil shrunk in shock. “What in the world are you wearing?!”

Hater blinked, glancing down at himself. “Uhhh, a cloak?”

Peepers clenched his fists. “I can _see_ that it’s a cloak, Sir, but why isn’t it in the Hater Empire colors?!” Instead of blood red and intimidating black, his lord’s cloak was dark blue with a bit of gold lining, and dark grey at the base. Even the pattern was different! Instead of looking like dripping blood, the edges were the colors met were now sharp like icicles.

Hater however, didn’t see the problem. “Yeah, I still say red and green are better colors, but come on, Peepers! This cloak is just as cool as my other ones! It’s got gold and sharp edges and everything! Cashmere and the guys gave it to me last week, so I thought I’d wear it today.” He brushed his hands down the front of the cloak, flattening out any wrinkles. “Feels pretty soft too. I wonder what it’s made out of.”

“Wait wait, the guys?” Peepers repeated, his eye now twitching slightly.

“Yeah, the other Baaahalians!” Hater told him, “I don’t hang out with them as much as I hang out with Cashmere, but I do practice and spar a bit with them sometimes. Plus, I think they’ve finally forgotten about the whole ‘kidnapped your prince, almost tortured him and took over your planet’ thing.”

“Well… How, nice,” the commander nearly spat. Taking a moment to compose himself, he hopped down from his chair. “You know, Sir, I’m sure the others can finish things up here. How about, while we wait for the plans, you and I train some, hmmm? We could practice aiming and using your magic! We haven’t done that in a while, right?”

“Uh, yeah, because I’m already a master at using my powers, Peepers!” Hater reminded him, raising his hand and letting sparks run across his boney fingers as if to demonstrate.

Peepers held back a scowl. “Er, well, you know what they say, practice makes perfect!”

“Right, which is why I need to get to Baaahalla and practice my swordfighting. Geez, Peepers, it’s like you don’t want me to be awesome with swords!” With that, he started to walk away - but Peepers quickly ran in front of him.

“Wait, Sir! You know, _I’ve_ actually been brushing up on my sword skills as well! Reading about new techniques, watching demonstrations- Honestly, instead of going all the way to Baaaahalla, why don’t you just let me train you today? Huh? Won’t that be fun?” 

Looking a bit annoyed now, Hater rolled his eyes. “Ugh, Peepers. You can train me anytime. Besides, Cashmere’s a pretty good teacher and he makes training actually kinda fun and not dumb or annoying. And he doesn’t nag me or anything, not even when I mess up! And hey, with him training me, you’ve got more time to plan and stuff, and I’m becoming stronger and even greater!”

“I-! Er…” Peepers blinked. What, was Cashmere teaching him how to debate as well? “I, I suppose that’s true, but-”

“Well then it’s settled! See you later, C. Peeps!” With that, Hater easily walked passed his commander and out of the room, the metal doors slamming shut behind him. 

“…Wow, Lord Hater sure does like hanging out with that goat guy. Guess they’re pretty good frien-”

In one swift motion, Peepers got out his blaster and zapped the grunt. Once he finished, he stomped out of the room, leaving the other Watchdogs to their own devices, not even bothering to give them orders or remind them that they weren’t allowed to check their Spacebook accounts while on duty. He just let them be and got onto a nearby elevator, taking it up to a certain floor. “I’ve tried being patient,” he mumbled to himself, “but honestly I just-! …” The commander sighed, still trying some resemblance of composure. 

 _*ding!*_  As soon as the doors opened, he exited the elevator and headed into a narrow room - a room filled with blasters and grenades and nearly every other weapon a Watchdog could need. And on a shelf that he could just barely reach, Peepers saw the weapon he needed. Grabbing the handle tightly, he held up the blade, staring down his reflection. 

If Hater wasn’t going to get bored with Cashmere, then Peepers was going to have to put a stop to their lessons himself! 

()()()()()()()()

The sound of their blades clashing was so loud that it could be heard down the hall, and neither one was letting up. Making sure to keep light on his feet, Hater started to try and push Cashmere up against a nearby wall to try and get the upper hand. Unfortunately, the prince knew that strategy all too well, thanks to all the times that he himself had used it. 

So, before Hater could get the chance to corner him, Cashmere ducked down and kicked at him, trying to knock him off balance. Gritting his teeth, Hater jumped up and tried to get away from the goat’s strong legs. “No fair!”

“It is just as-a fair as you uusing yoor-a electric powers the last time we sparred!” Cashmere argued, standing up once more and steadying his blade. Planting his feet down for just a moment, Hater launched a strong attack, hoping he could return the favor and knock his opponent off balance a bit. 

Hit, hit, parry, block, hit, duck, hit, hit- the spar seemed to go on and on, and while he was admittedly getting tired, Hater still wasn’t slowing down. Cashmere couldn’t help but smile a bit. Truly, his determination was his friend’s greatest strength, moreso than any of his lightning bolts. 

Eventually, Cashmere held out a hand, and Hater stopped attacking. “This has been a good spar - a _very_ good spar! - and I look foorward to seeing the conclusion oof it. But for now, we should take a break, yah? We have-a not had one yet, afteer all.” 

“…Fine, but just for a few minutes,” Hater agreed, putting his weapon away. He was eager to win this battle, but a break did sound pretty good. So, the two sat down next to each other, with Cashmere grabbing his jug of water and Hater getting his bottle of Thunderblazz. 

“By the-a way, you have been practicing yoor technique, yah?” Cashmere asked, “Because I can-a certainly see an improovement from a couple oof days ago.” “Really?” “Yah!” Cashmere patted his shoulder. “Good work,  _min vän_.”

Hater beamed, giving a small nod. “Heh, thanks. But, I mean, if you REALLY want to see how good I’ve gotten, just wait until I finish our spar and kick your butt!”

Cashmere just chuckled. “We shall-a see, Lord Hater.” As he lifted his jug to take another drink, he heard the doors open. He assumed it was one of his men wanting to train a bit as well, but when he noticed the very small figure in the doorway, he quickly realized that wasn’t the case.

“Oh, uh, hey Peepers,” Hater said, raising an eyebrow, “What are you doing here?”

“Oh, just checking in on things,” the commander answered casually as he strolled into the room, his eye focused directly on Cashmere. “…So, Prince Cashmere, I’m curious. How long did you say you’ve been studying swordsfighting?”

“Ah… E-Ever since I was a kid,” Cashmere answered, curious why Peepers would even ask, “When I was about-a seven or eight years old.”

“Hmm, I see. And you’re in your mid-twenties or so, correct?” “…Yah.” “Interesting. Well, you know, I started studying combat in general at young age. Even before the Hater Empire was even a thought, I had an interest in it. Of course, when the Hater Empire did become a possibility, I buckled down and trained all I could. And, I’ve been training ever since.” He then added with a mumble- “And unlike you, I know how to use weapons other than just swords and sticks.”

Knowing just what he was getting at now, Cashmere frowned, but stayed calm. “I am sure that we-a both have pleenty oof experience in-a combat, Commander Peepers.”

“Oh, of course,” the Watchdog nodded, just a hint of sarcasm in his voice, “Though, some of our battle experiences may be just a bit more useful than others. I mean, you’ve hunted a few animals and fought a couple armies, I’ve fought on nearly every terrain imaginable have fought a wide array of enemies.” His eye narrowed a bit. “And, considering you have probably only studied Baaaahalian-style combat, there may be a difference in value of our outside of combat experience, as well.”

The goat prince scowled. _Don’t feed the troll, don’t feed the troll-_ “I am-a not tryying to deny that you may have a skill advantage, Commander Peepers. You-a do probably have much moor expeerience than-a me. But, you are also more expeerienced with a blaster than a sword, correct? So unless we are-a using our fists, I do not believe yoou could beat me in a spar.”

“Oh _really?_ Well, I’d have to respectfully disagree. In fact-” Now giving the prince a full on glare, Peepers turned slightly to reveal the sword and scabbard he had attached to his side, “Why don’t we test that theory right now?”

“Wait, what?!” Hater sat up. “Peepers, you’re actually going to challenge him to a duel?! But- But why the heck would you-?!”

“Why not?” His commander answered simply, “And besides, we might as well see if he’s actually skilled enough in swordfighting to be a good teacher.” And if - _when_ \- Peepers defeated him, maybe Hater would reconsider being taught by Cashmere at all. “So, Prince Cashmere, do you accept?”

Cashmere sighed slightly, but stood up. “It is against Baaaahalian tradition foor the-a prince to decline a challenge, so: I do.” Reluctantly stepping into the training area, he pulled out his sword. 

Peepers quickly did the same - though, since it was a sword made for a Watchdog, it looked more like a dagger than an actual sword. As for Hater, he just sat back and watched, frowning slightly. He knew from experience - both from watching him and from personal experience - that Peepers was pretty good with swords, but Cashmere was a master! Still… Would Peepers be able to pull it off?

“Are yoou ready?” Cashmere asked, getting into a starting position. Peepers didn’t answer. He just sprung forward and started swinging. Because of the size difference, they both had to adjust their styles a bit. Cashmere had hunch over a bit and wasn’t able to aim at Peepers’ feet while Peepers had to sometimes jump up in order to attack the prince (and to get some momentum for his ‘sword’).

“I-a see yoou are skilled in the-a fencing style,” Cashmere commented after just a minute into their fight.

Peepers tried to hold back his surprise. “And just-” he blocked a hit, “Er, just what makes you so sure?!”

“Yoor attacks are-a quicker and moor precise,” the prince explained, easily blocking and resisting a few of Peepers’ attacks in a row, “And you also-a tend to-a sometimes hold yoor sword with-a one hand on instinct.” With that, Cashmere started to go on the offensive.

Peepers narrowed his eye. bracing himself only slightly for the hit as he blocked it. “…Honestly, stop patronizing me. I thought you people were supposed to be ‘honorable’.”

Cashmere blinked. “I was just-a making a coomment!” That statement prompted Peepers to try and go on the offensive again, more out of anger than strategy.

“Not that!” the commander snapped, “I can tell when someone’s holding back! I’m a commander, not some rookie! So don’t you dare think that you have to go easy on me!” With that, Peepers jumped up - reaching nearly a foot above Cashmere - and aimed for his horns. It wouldn’t be a lethal shot, but it would still hurt.

Cashmere had been caught a bit off-guard by it, but still manage to catch his opponent’s blade just in time. Though, thanks to that, Peepers was able to sort of bounce himself off it and stay in the air, trying again and again to hit the Baaaahalian prince from above. But as good as the strategy was, Cashmere’s longer arms and bigger blade still allowed him block the attacks and eventually push Peepers away from him.

Growling as he stuck the landing, Peepers didn’t even hesitate to get back into a starting position. No way was he going to slow down now! “I mean it, Cashmere! Stop holding back!”

The prince’s frown deepened. “You-a do reaalize that this is a spar, yah? Not a battle to the-a death?!” 

“I don’t care!” Peepers practically screeched, gripping his handle so tightly that it was starting to shake slightly. “I came here to beat you and show that I’m just as good - better even! - at fighting than you! But I can only do that if you’re fighting at the best of your ability, so stop holding back!” With that, he started to run forward.

By this point, it was obvious to the prince that his opponent wouldn’t accept anything less than a total win, or a total defeat. So, mumbling an apology, Cashmere met Peepers’ attack with one of his own. 

As soon as he felt it, Peepers was unable to stop himself from letting out a small yelp. His entire body felt like it was shaking, even the blade of his ‘sword’ had started to wobble slightly. And before he could even recover, Cashmere swung again, forcing Peepers to duck instead of try to block it. 

The fight became a lot quicker now, with Cashmere on the total offensive - and all Peepers could do was dodge or block the best he could. Sure, he was still determined, but with each block he performed, he felt his muscles get more and more sore. The hits were so hard, there were even a couple times where he thought his blade was going to shatter, but thankfully it managed to stay whole. 

Had they been using just their fists, maybe his stamina would’ve lasted a bit long. After all, Cashmere seemed about as strong as Sylvia and he had fought her just fine. Unfortunately, fist fighting and swordfighting were two very different things, and while Peepers had already known that, he was actually realizing it now. Every time he tried to attack, Cashmere would not only block, but was now using the extra strength he had to push him back as well.

Each move led to another step back - and Peepers knew he was reaching the edge of the training ring boundaries. He had to think of something! He tried getting up high again, but his arms and legs had gotten so sore by this point that he could only jump about a foot or two up. He tried aiming for Cashmere’s legs to try and knock him off balance, and even tried to use his own strategy against him and tried to get behind the prince to attack.

But of course, Cashmere knew all these strategies well and was able to counter them before Peepers could even put them into full effect. Not only that, but being able to keep light on his feet allowed him to keep up with Peepers’ speed - which had been slowing with each passing second. 

“Do you surren-?” “NEVER!” As much as he was panting and as much as it hurt, Peepers forced himself to continue - which meant Cashmere didn’t have much of a choice. 

Letting out a battle cry, Peepers tried once again to attack, hoping that he would somehow manage to knock Cashmere off balance or that he wouldn’t be able to block it in time, but the exact opposite happened. As soon as their blades met, Cashmere thrusted his arm forward, launching his opponent back and causing him to land on his back hard. Though, if he had been using his full strength and not just most of it, Cashmere was sure that Peepers would’ve hit the wall instead of the floor.

“The-a battle is oover,” he stated as he started to put away his sword, “And I-a thank yoou for a good-”

“I-It’s not over!” Grunting, the commander started to pick himself up, reaching for his weapon. “I, I can still fight!”

“Commaander Peepers, please,” Cashmere started to say, leaving his sword in his scabbard despite his opponent’s insistence, “There would be-a no point in continuing-”

“I’m not d-done with you yet!” Peepers got back into a fighting position, wincing slightly, “Now, now get out your sword and fight me!” He prepared to rush forward. “You may have won the round, but you haven’t won the-”

Just then, before he could even take a step, he saw only bright green, and felt a buzzing sensation covering his whole body soon after. “What?! No! SIR!”

“Peepers, I’m not going to let you get yourself get beat up again!” Hater said, standing up now with a scowl on his face as he stretched his hand outwards, continuing to keep his commander in place with his magic. “Just accept that you lost and that Cashmere won, alright?! I mean geez, why would you challenge him anyway?! He’s supposed to be our ALLY! And he isn’t even a jerk or anything! Just, what is wrong with-?!”

“ _I haven’t lost!_ ” Peepers insisted, trying to break free of the electric grip, “I can still beat him!”

“Well you can’t do it now! You just got your butt kicked by him! So just fight Cashmere later!” 

“No! I have to fight him now!”

“Ughhh, why?! Why do you have to fight him now?!” 

Even in his temporary paralyzed state, Peepers still managed to clench his eye shut. “BECAUSE I NEED TO SHOW YOU THAT HE ISN’T AS GREAT OR AS COOL AS YOU THINK HE IS AND BECAUSE I’M TIRED OF YOU TRAINING WITH HIM ALL THE TIME!”

Hater groaned as he resisted the urge to shock the little eyeball. “That’s such a STUPID reason, Peepers! Why would you even-?!”

“Wait.” Both of them stopped, and glanced over to look at Cashmere. “You… Commander Peepers, are… Are you-a jealous oof our-a training?”

Peepers froze (or rather, he froze on his own). Hater’s eyes widened, thinking about the comment before slowly turning to look at his commander, his face both confused and curious. “…Are you?”

“…” Peepers immediately started struggling again, and because it caught Hater off guard, he was actually able to break free of the magic. Unsurprisingly, as soon as his tiny feet hit the ground, Peepers rushed out the door.

“…Lord Hater?” Cashmere asked after a moment, “Do, ah… Do you-a want to cut this session short so yoou can-a talk to him?”

“…Nah.” He got out his sword, though he didn’t look at Cashmere - his eyes hidden slightly, thanks to his hood, though his horns hadn’t folded down. “Let’s keep going.”

The goat prince paused, then nodded. “Al-a-right then.”

()()()()()()()

The ship was quiet, practically too quiet. For once, Peepers was actually hoping for noise - Watchdogs goofing off, blaring alarms, even banjo ditties. Anything to make it so he didn’t have to lay in bed and think about it, remember it… With a groan, he grabbed a pillow and screamed into it for a few seconds.

“I can’t believe I did that! That I _said_ that! I- I was just-! Ugh, I was just making sure Cashmere didn’t make him into some Baaaahalian loyal! That’s a logical reason to step in! And, and Hater was just-! Sure he was practicing swordfighting, but he still could’ve been using the time to plan or, or something! Another good reason for me to step in!” He clenched his fists, squeezing his pillow so tightly that he half expected it to explode into a poof of feathers.

“I’m not jealous… I’m not jealous!” Hater got jealous. Hater was the one who acted out of some petty want or need. Peepers was WAY too smart and mature for that! There was no way he was jealous! “I just didn’t want- Er, I didn’t think-! I just-!” He stopped, his mind still desperately trying to come up with some sort of explanation that was not only reasonable, but completely dismissed the possibility of him being jealous.

But nothing ever came, and after over a minute of thinking, Peepers sighed. He had been jealous, he had been petty… And to make matters worse (or perhaps just more ironic), Hater had been the one to pull him back. “Fan-flarping-tastic,” he muttered to himself, letting his arms fall to his sides.

Just then, he heard his bedroom door slide open. Even before he heard a voice, part of him knew who it was. After all, only one person came into his room without knocking first. “Uh, hey Peepers…”

Peepers closed his eye for a moment, forcing himself to take the pillow off his face and sit up. “Yes- Yes Sir?” he asked, faltering a bit when he saw that his lord was back in his usual cloak (which he could admit that he was a bit happy about).

“Just, uh… Just wanted to see what you were doing, I guess,” Hater mumbled, glancing down at the floor slightly. 

“Well, I’m just… laying here,” Peepers replied, managing to keep eye contact but still sounding about as awkward, “Rest- er, relaxing.” He didn’t want to make it sound like he needed to rest his body and lick his wounds after his defeat.

“Oh, okay…” For what felt like forever, neither one of them spoke - and Peepers couldn’t exactly blame his lord for the silence. This type of situation was pretty new for both of them, and if he was being honest, Peepers didn’t want to talk about it anyway. Some failures could be good learning devices, while others were better left forgotten. But eventually, Hater started to speak again.

“So, I was thinking… We could probably leave this system soon.”

Peepers’ eye widened slightly. “Really?”

“Yeah. I mean, Cashmere said that I’ve reached a pretty good spot in my training, and that I don’t really need him to train me anymore.” He couldn’t help but smile a bit at that. “And… He said that as long as I keep practicing on my own, and maybe spar a bit with people here, I could become a master in no time.”

“Well… That doesn’t surprise me too much, Sir,” the commander replied, “After all, you were - _are_ \- the Greatest in the Galaxy.”

“Heh, yeah… But, you know, I still wanna spar with Cashmere sometimes. Not ALL the time but, every once in a while. …Maybe fly over to Baaaahalla, or have him visit the ship. Er, just for training, of course.”

“Of course…” Even if he didn’t believe that was the only reason, Peepers still nodded. ‘But it looks like there’s no denying that Hater thinks of Cashmere as a friend now,’ he thought to himself, feeling only slightly bitter about it. …Well, maybe it was more than slightly, but still, it could’ve been worse. At least he wasn’t friends with Wander or Awesome. 

“Yeah…” Hater rubbed the back of his neck. “So, so if you get annoyed about it, it’s your own fault! And, when Cashmere can’t visit or when I don’t want him too, you can just train with me, got it? I mean, Cashmere’s a prince and stuff but… Well, maybe he’s a good commander too since he has an army and stuff but, I mean…” He finally looked right at him. “You’re a better commander. And a pretty good fighter and, and a pretty cool guy to hang out with too. So, yeah…”

“…” Well, maybe it wasn’t the most eloquently put, but despite it all, grop darn it all, it still made Peepers smile. “Thank you, Sir.”

Hater just crossed his arms, looking away again. “Yeah, whatever. Now, now get out of bed already. I mean, the Watchdogs have got to have that list of plans done by now! Quit being so lazy, Peepers! We’ve got a galaxy to save! No way am I letting Dominator destroy my planets!”

Almost immediately, Peepers hopped out of bed. “Of course not, Sir, and neither am I. So let’s get to work,” he said as he walked over to his lord’s side, right where he belonged, and together they walked down the hall towards the War Room.

Maybe he didn’t like having to share Hater’s attention- …No, he _definitely_ didn’t like it. But even so, even with the annoyance and, yes, even jealousy this caused, part of him knew… Part of him still knew that no matter how many allies or even friends (even if they never called them as such) Hater had, Peepers’ spot would still always be by the skeletal lord’s side. He needed him, they needed each other. 

They were commander and lord, and they could even call each other friends. That was how things were, and that’s how they should - _would_ \- stay. Maybe it wasn’t perfect or just as Peepers thought it would be (then again, when was anything involving Hater perfect?), but it was enough. 

“…So, how were you able to jump so high anyway? And, how’d you learn how to keep up there for so long while fighting? You’d better teach me that too when we train!”

Peepers smiled a bit. “Gladly, Sir.” Yep, definitely enough.

**THE END**


End file.
